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New Talent: Thomas Purbeck

Getting to know ‘Le Premier Rosbif de Biborg’, a creative copywriter with a penchant for adventure

Biborg is the French interactive agency making waves in the UK entertainment industry with their growing London office – and one of their more recent recruits is bringing his creative Anglais skills into the mix. Thomas Purbeck joined the agency in January and has already been getting stuck into projects for Netflix, Marvel, PlayStation and more. On y va!

LBB> Where do you come from?

TP> I was born and raised in London. Je suis le premier rosbif de Biborg.

LBB> What did you do before joining Biborg?

TP> I worked as a copywriter at Imagination for two and a half years after graduating from the University of Liverpool with an English Literature degree. During my time at Imagination I wrote for a range of clients, including: Coca-Cola, 3M, Shell and Jaguar Land Rover.

LBB> Outside of work, what are you into? What keeps you going?

TP> Despite being quite a rational person, football dominates most of my weekends. Beyond that, my favourite TV show of all time is Mad Men, béarnaise is my most cherished sauce and I really miss David Bowie.

I’m also partial to the occasional grand adventure. Before joining Biborg I went on a three-month, east to west trip across the USA to travel and write. Obama was still president.

LBB> What is your role at Biborg UK?

TP> I’m a creative copywriter, or ‘concepteur-rédacteur’ in French. Across all Biborg projects, I deal with the writing, whether that means scripts, taglines or messaging.

I’m involved at the ideas stage too, responding to briefs and working on concepts with the writers, designers and strategists within the wider creative team.

LBB> What are the main projectsyou are working on? you are working on?

TP> Since starting in January, my main projects have included: a launch campaign for a new Netflix show, a couple of AAA video game pitches, and some projects for Marvel, Relic Entertainment and PlayStation.

LBB> What is your vision of the UK market in terms of interactive advertising?

TP> The UK is a particularly cynical market. No one wants to be shouted at about a brand or product that is of no interest to them, and rightly so. The predominant feeling is: ‘If you’re going to interrupt my life, you better have a good reason’, meaning that ads tend to be ignored unless they’re interesting, funny, beautiful or useful.

We’re spending more time online and on phones, so companies start devoting more time and money towards those channels rather than traditional media. As (opt-in) data collection gets more sophisticated, ads can be tailored, the right people can be targeted and this can help turn ads into a service rather than an inconvenience. Then again, last week Facebook showed me an ad for a new plus-size range of Russian womenswear, so there are still a few kinks left to iron out.

Don't tell my mother I'm in advertising, she thinks I play piano in a whorehouse.

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